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Moving day approaches--just a couple of weeks to go! I am having a terrible time settling down to anything that doesn't involve going to Lowe's or Home Depot (hence my recent lack of blog posts). Right now it seems every minute of my life is geared toward making the new house habitable, or worrying endlessly about having nowhere to live if it isn't.
Amidst all the angst, though, I have had a little respite--somehow I've managed to fit in a new art class on "Illustrating Cats and Dogs." Each of the six weekly sessions is three hours long and may very well be saving my sanity. Not only is the subject super-fun, but our instructor, Debra Klecan, is an excellent teacher, full of great ideas that a) are diverting me from non-stop moving-day nerves, and b) are helping me organize my nonfiction WIP, A Pet Owner's Book of Days, as well as a new (yes!) picture book WIP I began in March--the two reasons I signed up for the class. I particularly like our main assignment to create a portfolio that is also a scrapbook/journal/notebook of everything dog- and cat-related we can find. Debra recommended we use a three-ring binder and plastic sleeves for storing our reference materials, including magazine cut-outs, greeting cards, and samples of our own artwork.I've always kept visual reference binders for my novels, full of character wardrobes and writing prompts, but this is the first time I've tried doing something similar for an art project. For this particular exercise I chose a fabric-covered binder that zips closed and has a large sewn-in zippered pouch for pens and pencils (lots of pens and pencils). The binder itself is also big enough to include two 9" x 12" drawing pads I can tuck into the back (one is newsprint, the other is a medium-quality sketching paper). Finally, in the spirit of Serious Organization, I placed heavy, reinforced card stock dividers between my various categories:- Cat Photos
- Dog Photos
- Cat and Dog Fine Art
- Abstract Designs and Patterns
- Color Combinations and Palettes
- How-to Info (including our class hand-outs)
- Notes and Extra Sketch Paper (gray card stock I punched holes in--works really well).
So far I've got a pretty good collection of magazine and calendar photos for the "Cat and Dog" sections, but my favorite category of the moment is "Abstract Designs and Patterns." Copying designs from tiles and decorative architectural borders is meditative and calming, and good for hand-eye coordination. It's also giving me some interesting ideas I can use as borders for the pages of my picture-book-in-progress, as well as any future art journal pages. Some of my other reference materials for patterns and borders include:- Wallpaper.
- Concrete, stone, and brickwork.
- Fabric.
- The natural world: insect wings, wood grain, seed pods, leaves, petals, etc.
- Embroidery and knitting stitches.
- Sewing notions, trims, and ribbons
- Junk mail and print advertising.
- Decorative packaging, e.g. cardboard boxes, chocolate wrap, luxury bath products.
- Gift wrap.
- Door keys (especially vintage/antique models).
- Piano keys, too!
- Shelf liner: rubber, plastic, paper, stick-on (been buying a lot of that lately).
- Book covers.
- Jewelry.
And that's just the beginning. I'm sure there's plenty more inspiration waiting for me at the hardware store. Today you'll find me in the aisle marked "Closets."Tip of the Day: Drawing patterns is an excellent way to spend some downtime away from your manuscript, especially when you're feeling stuck or uninspired. Add the designs right to your journal pages, or start a fresh notebook based on pure design work. It's amazing how easily you can problem-solve once you've switched gears from writing to drawing and back again. Happy doodling!
Happy "W is for Weekend"! Hope you're having a good one. It's dark and cloudy in Albuquerque this afternoon, just the right weather for today's keeper book: Writing Poetry from the Inside Out, Finding Your Voice Through the Craft of Poetry, by Sandford Lyne. This particular book is so important to me I've written my name on the inside cover, just like I did in the fifth-grade with Little Women and The Wizard of Oz: My Book, Hands Off! I carry it with me to all sorts of important places like the library for some quiet writing practice; my writer's group for more writing practice and group exercise; for inspiration when I'm waiting in the Lowe's parking lot while my husband shops for gizmos. As Lyne states in the preface, ". . . poetry writing is the most portable of the arts . . ." It's true--all you need is a pen and a notebook, pencil if you prefer.Here are my three favorite things about the book:- I love the way Lyne refers to a writer's journal/sketchbook/notebook as the writer's "studio." Choosing just the right size, paper, binding, and weight of your book goes a long way to feeling comfortable with it, making you want to write more often, or as Lyne calls it, trying your hand at some "poem sketching." The simple act of opening your notebook can become a touchstone, transforming wherever you are to writing space, helping you to block out noise and other distractions. So choose well!
- There's a lot more than poetry "form and function" here. Yes, there's lots of "how to" instruction on "how to write a poem" throughout the text, but this is also a book about how to reach that deep and sacred part of you that wants to express itself through the written word. In many ways, this is secretly a book about how to live, and live well.
- Word clusters. There are about 30 pages of word clusters at the back of the book, divided into groups of four. For example: barefoot, evening, shadows, king. Or: wall, ancient, dawn, dusk. These have been provided as writing prompts (which makes this such a great book for writer's groups). I've used these clusters in all kinds of ways: singly, as the given set, or taking words from across the pages to make new combinations. I've also used them for more than poetry, too, e.g., essays and fiction. And if you manage to work your way through every set, you can always start adding some fresh words of your own to the mix, cutting out words from magazines, or going through the dictionary for fresh and unusual ideas.
There's still five days of National Poetry Month left (and only three more blog posts till the end of the A-Z Blogging Challenge!). How about joining me to write some new poetry over the coming days? Here are a few word clusters of my own gleaned from magazines to get you started:mirage
romance
harvest
escape
taste
scarlet
theory
world
horizon
balance
window
snow
image
ancestral
passion
world
They almost make a poem on their own! Have fun, and I'll be back on Monday. (Yay for free Sundays!)
Yesterday the strangest thing happened to me: I was in a bookstore searching for a new art book (totally realizing that the last thing I need is a new art book), and when I opened a how-to on watercolor techniques, there was a letter inside. A hand-written, angsty "I-don't-mean-to-be-passive-aggressive-but-I really-hate-you-because-I-love-you" letter. Wow. It was written on lined notebook paper and made me feel like I was a character in a movie or a novel. All I could think about was: Who was supposed to receive this letter and why was it in this book? In a public space!
The part that was really strange to me, though, was that I had already planned to make today's post for "U" be a celebration of Urgent 2nd Class, Creatimg Curious Collage, Dubious Documents, and Other Art From Ephemera, by Nick Bantock, the creator of the Griffin & Sabine series of books. If you are a Bantock fan, you'll immediately recognize the significance of finding a letter in a book. If you don't know Bantock's work--run, don't walk to the bookstore and get yourself a copy of Griffin & Sabine, an Extraordinary Correspondence right now--skip reading this post, just go!
In my opinion, Nick Bantock is the foremost mixed media and collage artist/author ever. The End. I have admired (and envied) his work most of my adult life, and taking one of his workshops is so on my bucket list I get dizzy just thinking about it. Fortunately, I have a way to stay sort-of sane while I'm waiting because Urgent 2nd Class is one of my all-time keepers. The book is full of Bantock's artwork, and better yet, great ideas and tips on how he does it. Not only is the book beautiful, it's genuinely useful.
Bantock is the reason I first became interested in making collages of my own. I've often mentioned in the past how important magazine cut-outs have been to both my artwork and writing, but to get that real "fine art" kind of effect, magazine pics can sometimes be too "slick" or commercial-looking.
Bantock uses all kinds of strange and interesting materials in his work, much of it found from combing through vintage shops and yard sales. My own collection of collage materials is rather paltry in comparison, and one of the things I'd like to do this summer is start creating a better selection of items. To get started, I brainstormed a list:- Used costume jewelry: pins, beads, chains.
- Old jigsaw puzzles--doesn't matter if pieces are missing. All the better if they are.
- Vintage postcards, travel brochures.
- Vintage greeting cards.
- Vintage theater programs and tickets.
- Stamps. International, used, pretty, weird . . .
- Buttons, laces, and fabric trims. Preferably used.
- Old books in bad condition (so I can tear them up with a clear conscience).
- Vintage menus, paper placemats.
- Doilies, both fabric and paper (good for making imprints and texture in paint).
- Wallpaper scraps.
- Really bad condition wall-art prints and posters (again for tearing up).
I have a feeling that searching for these items is going to be just as much fun as finding ways to use them. Let me know if you're planning to hold a yard sale any time soon!
THANK You! Some great practical points you've shared to help overcome the insecurity of what's unfamiliar to me. I especially like what you said in your book, The Essential Guide For New Writers, about scheduling time for writing. These answers are wonderful; I'm thrilled!
So happy you enjoyed the post, Diana. Thanks for dropping by! Creating a writer's schedule is always a challenge, I'm forever refining mine. But if you can find at least one hour a day to call your own, it's amazing what you can achieve. Best wishes, and thanks again for the idea. Happy Creating!